


Black and White Christmas

by errantknightess



Category: D.Gray-man
Genre: Christmas, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-26
Updated: 2014-12-26
Packaged: 2018-03-03 17:53:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2859722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/errantknightess/pseuds/errantknightess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tyki gets dragged into the storm of Christmas preparations.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Black and White Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [exmachinarium](https://archiveofourown.org/users/exmachinarium/gifts).



> Pieced together from a bunch of Christmas headcanons hurled at me by [M%](http://exmachinarium.tumblr.com/).

Tyki sneezed. The sharp, bitter smell of the evergreen, spices and smoke drilled into his nostrils. He wiped his nose with a finger and looked over his shoulder, shading his eyes with one hand. The giant spruce in the middle of the room currently presented a fine picture of fire hazard if he’s ever seen one.

“Are you sure that’s enough candles?”

Road turned away from this bonfire of a tree and stuck her tongue out at him.

“If you don’t like it, come here and help me.”

“I’m not in the mood,” Tyki lazily turned the page in his book, not really registering the words on the one he’s just read. „Ask Jasdevi.”

“I did,” Road pouted, “and look where it got me.”

“Hey, whaddaya mean? We’re helping!”

Tyki looked over to the tangled mass of decorations that suddenly spoke with the twins’ unison.

“You were supposed to dress up the tree, not yourselves. Idiots. Come oooon, Tyki, pleaseeee,” Road’s voice hit a playfully whiny note as she turned back to him, eyes wide open, the unholy amount of candle flames flickering in her pupils.

Tyki sighed, run his hand through his hair and set the book down, not bothering to mark the page. He looked around indecisively. The floor was covered with glittery odds and ends, wooden knick‑knacks, baubles and what not. Slowly, Tyki heaved himself up from his cozy armchair by the fireplace and meandered across the room, trying not to step on anything.

“What do you want me to do?” he asked as he finally found his way through the treacherous waters and reached the clear spot around the tree. Road waved a sharp-edged, dangerously pointy silver star in his general direction.

“Take those and hang them somewhere.”

“Anywhere?”

“Anywhere. Or maybe on the upper branches. I can’t reach that high,” Road thrust a pile of stars into Tyki’s arms and pranced away to collect a new batch of trinkets. Tyki looked up; indeed, the onslaught of decorations ended abruptly halfway through the tree. Only the candles, which Road didn’t place there by hand, made it all the way up to the top.

“Why don’t you get Lero to give you a boost?” Tyki reached up on tiptoes and leaned in to hang the star on one of the empty branches. The needles pricked at him through his shirt and their smell made his nose all tingly again. He placed another star next to the first one, and another one, hanging them haphazardly wherever he could reach from where he was standing, snuggling up to the tree and feeling quite dumb.

“I can’t find him anywhere,” Road crouched at his feet with a troop of gingerbread men which she soon started to put on the tree, hanged by pieces of strings strung through holes in their heads. “He’s probably hiding to get out of work. Stupid umbrella. Hey, are you gonna do this right or not? Don’t just put them all in one place! Spread them out a little, okay?”

“Okay,” Tyki sighed again and started rearranging the fruits of his work, slowly making his way around the tree, when suddenly the branches a couple paces from him shook violently.

“What the...” Tyki turned the corner – do trees even have corners? – and nearly tripped over a pair of long legs across his path. He looked down, mildly surprised to meet Lulubell’s indifferent stare. She was sprawled flat on her back, poking a huge red glass ball with a perfectly manicured finger.

“All the armchairs were taken,” she explained in answer to the unasked question that hovered between them. “I can’t move an inch without stepping on this garbage.”

Tyki wiggled a star at her, reflecting the candlelight with its ridged surface; speckles of light danced on Lulubell’s face. She squinted.

“Aren’t you going to give us a hand?”

The ball bounced against her fingertip with a metallic rasp, sending green needles flying on the floor.

“Not likely. I like it here.”

_Bounce, bounce_.

“You’re shaking the tree.”

“Am I?”

_Bounce_.

Tyki shrugged, hanged the star on the nearest branch and realized he’s just run out of them.

“I’m done here!” He called over to Road.

“No, you’re not! Just take something else and keep going,” she nudged him with a candy cane and skipped past him to hang it, leaving Tyki to weave his way through the cluttered room once again. Not intending to disturb the fragile balance of the many, many cardboard boxes stacked in swaying pyramids along the walls, and not really keen on getting down on his knees to rummage through the toys strewn on the floor, he headed straight to the far corner where he had spotted the twins earlier. They were still at it. Tyki reached over a box full of cross-eyed straw reindeers and tugged at the end of the fuzzy chain draped across Devitt’s shoulders.

“Hey! I need that!”

Tyki followed the chain with his eyes and, indeed, found Jasdero all neatly tied up at the other end, which wasn’t really stopping him from trying to stab Devitt with a glass icicle. Resigned, Tyki dropped the chain and stepped back to search for something else – and soon felt something crunch under his foot.

“Oh. I’m sorry, Road, I think I broke your...” his voice trailed off as he bent down to take a closer look at the damage.

It was a tiny wooden figurine, painted black and white and oddly not fitting with the wild storm of colour all around. Tyki’s eyes narrowed.

“Oh, forget it. There’s still lots them here. Lulu had broken a bunch already, too-” Road waved her hand dismissively, but the look on Tyki’s face caught her attention.

“Tyki? What is it?” She stepped lightly over to him, her voice tinted with concern as he didn’t react at all.

“His arm fell off. Look,” Tyki let out a strained, strangled half-chuckle, holding out the two pieces for her to see. Road’s eyes widened.

“I said forget it!” She snarled, snatching the armless figurine from him and stomped away, crushing some more ornaments as she went. Tyki shoved his hands into his pockets, threw his head back and burst out with laughter. He laughed for a long time, or so it felt to him, loudly, mirthlessly.

“Now, now, Tyki-pet. I see you’re finally feeling the Christmas spirit, eh?” The voice of the Millennium Earl crept up on him, putting an end to his spasm. Tyki straightened himself and squinted, trying to make out the Earl’s face in the wobbly light from the fireplace. He didn’t see much, just a vague silhouette and the steady flash of knitting needles. Tyki wondered briefly if it was just the play of shadows that made the Earl’s hat appear to be adorned with a pair of impressive reindeer antlers. At any rate, the tune he was humming – apparently having once again lost all interest in the ruckus around him – sounded decidedly festive.

Tyki grabbed a couple of tiny glass balls laying around and headed back to the tree, this time making sure to tread really, really carefully. He stepped over Lulubell, who was still assaulting all the ornaments within her reach, and grabbed a branch to lean it down closer to him. One by one, he hanged the balls and let go of the branch. The tree rocked dangerously; one of the balls catapulted across the room and shattered against the wall in a small cloud of sparkling dust.

“Yaaaay! Ornaments war!” Jasdevi immediately took their cue and unwrapped themselves from the chains, gathering armfuls of decorations and proceeding to hurl them at each other. Tyki covered his face with his palm, pieces of glass whistling past him.

“Green bomb! Ahahaha, take that!” Another glass ball crashed into smithereens. The twins howled with laughter, running around and trampling the scattered remains of the decorations.

“Oh, this is just great,” Road emerged from behind the tree, rolling her eyes.

“You said it yourself, we have plenty of those,” Tyki dodged a wooden sleigh with a full team of reindeers launched at the terminal speed.

“Not for long... Lulu, would you stop that already?” The tree shook wildly as Lulubell attacked her glass ball with a newfound passion. A couple of silver stars rained down and rammed into the floor. Tyki scowled at such a blatant disregard for his hard work.

“Don’t just stand there, Tyki, get moving! We don’t have the whole day,” Road caught a projectile glass ball in mid-air and put it on the nearest branch. “Have you seen my candy canes anywhere? I’m sure I left the whole box on the table, but it’s gone.”

“Huh? No, I haven’t seen it. Maybe Jas and Dev tossed it somewhere.”

“Come on, man! We’re not stupid! Who would throw candy around?”

“Well, it was here and now it’s not. If you didn’t take it, then-“ Road stopped short with a glimmer of sudden realization in her eyes. “Oh. Of course.”

She hopped across the room, gracefully avoiding the ornaments flying back and forth between the twins, and snuck up behind one of the fireplace armchairs.

“Gotcha!” She pointed an accusatory finger at her thief. Skinn hunched his shoulders as if trying to shrink his hefty frame, the empty box in his lap giving incriminating evidence. He was still chewing on the last cane with loud crunching and smacking. Road shifted her eyes from the box to the half‑emptied plate of holey-headed gingerbread men and leaned her forehead against the backrest.

„Dammit, Skinn, those were supposed to go on the tree! Ugh! Tyki, would you be a dearie and run to buy some more? And some gingerbreads, we’re out of those, too,” she added as the crunching behind the backrest grew louder. „And maybe some apples? You like them, right, Tyki? Oh, and some chocolate! And walnuts, and-”

“That’s a lot of things,” Tyki grumbled, tousling his hair and fishing odd glass splinters out of it.

Road smiled her sweetest smile.

“Don’t worry, Tyki. I’ll make you a list.”

***

Cigarette smoke mingled with the vapor from Tyki’s breath. The afternoon was clear, damp and cold; the low orange sun set the frost-dusted windowpanes on fire, blinding him. He turned a corner into a shaded alleyway and closed his eyes in relief.

“Caaandyyy caaaneeeeees... Buuuyyyy... Caaaandyyyy caaaneees...”, a shrill voice lamented from the depths of his breast pocket. That was even more irritating than the sunlight.

“Yes, yes, I know. Shut up, stupid card,” Tyki grumbled, wondering if this was Road’s subtle way of getting back at him. The paper bag clutched between his chest and the crook of his arm was heavy with sweets and annoyingly uncomfortable to carry. Tyki looked around, absent-mindedly putting the cigarette out with his heel.

“Caaandy canes... Caaandyyy... caaaneeeeeeeees...”

“Yeah, quit whining, I’m on it.”

He braced himself to step back into the sun and the crowd of the main street when a familiar voice called his name.

“Tyki! Hey, man. What are you doing here?”

Tyki turned around to the two men and a child approaching him from the other end of the alley.

“I’m... shopping,” he shrugged, caught completely off guards by his old companions.

“You’re running errands dressed up all fancy like that?” Clark tilted his head quizzically.

“I’m headed off to a family gathering later.” Well, that was technically true.

“Right. But sure you’ll find a moment to share a Christmas glass of wine with your pals, won’t ya?” Momo raised two bottles wrapped in shoddy brown paper and grinned like a shark.

Tyki smiled back.

“There’s always time for that.”

***

The wine warmed them up pleasantly. They drank from mismatched, chipped mugs, sitting on the rough concrete floor of the basement room that Tyki’s friends were currently staying in. The late afternoon sun seeped in through a narrow window at the street level, bathing the room in a soft, golden glow. They shared some cold turkey sandwiches and a couple of gingersnaps from Tyki’s bag, talking over one another with full mouths and bursting with thunderous laughter reverberating through the entire room. Eaze was quiet as usual for most of time, but Momo and Clark raced to fill Tyki in on everything that’s happened since he left, throwing in a bunch of side anecdotes and a good share of gossip. Tyki listened intently, slowly sipping his wine and racking his brain for some stories to tell in return, something – anything – that didn’t revolve around his life as a Noah; he was infinitely glad his friends knew better than to ask uncomfortable questions about his latest period of absence.

“Drat. Do you guys have matches? Can’t find mine,” Clark scrambled to light up a lamp and Tyki only just then realized it had already got so dark they could barely see one another’s faces in the dusk. Somehow, it didn’t bother him at all. He fumbled in his pocket, passed the box to his friend and staggered up.

“I should get going. They’re waiting for me,” he thought about the havoc he will probably find back home and wondered briefly if maybe he should stay another couple of hours… No, Road wouldn’t be too happy about that, and he definitely didn’t want to get on her bad side any more. He put his coat on, collected his groceries and hesitated.

“Hey, Eaze,” he reached to the bag and pulled out a handful of candies in colourful wrappers. “Here. Merry Christmas.”

“Thanks, Tyki!” The boy scooped up the gift with both hands and stuffed it in his pocket – and then pulled close and gave Tyki a tight hug somewhere around his knees.

“There, there,” Tyki patted him on the head and gently untangled himself from the embrace. He raised his hand in a farewell to Clark and Momo, buttoned up the collar of his coat and left.

Outside, it began to snow. Tyki breathed in the freezing air, felt it fill him up, make him absurdly light and dizzy. Or maybe it was the wine. The snow danced against the dark purple sky, thick petals sticking to Tyki’s coat and scarf and eyelashes. He folded the rim of his bag to keep them out, a futile effort as the falling snow settled on the paper, soaking it through. Not too eager to have it all fall apart in his arms, Tyki hurried along the alley back towards the main street. The Cell Roron wiggled his way out of Tyki’s pocket and fluttered around his head like yet another giant, annoying snowflake.

“Caaandy caaaneeeees... You stiiiill haven’t booooought… caaandyyy caaaneeees...”

Tyki swatted impatiently at him.

“Can it, snippet.”

They turned into the main street. In spite of the hour – and the weather – it was still crowded and busy. People were striding in all directions, evidently completing the last of pre-Christmas errands, or just strolling along, enjoying a nice evening out. Tyki weaved his way through them, half-blindly, the snow falling into his eyes, the crowd jostling him left and right. With every passed shop window, the Roron’s cries grew more and more urgent. Tyki wiped his face with his gloved hand; people were starting to look at him funny.

“Caaaaaaaaandyyyyyy caaaaaaneeeeeeeeeeeeeeees…”

“Oh for the love of-” Tyki grabbed the wailing card and stuffed it into the pocket of his trousers. He frowned slightly, feeling a tiny, hard shape under his fingers. He fished for it in the folds of the lining and pulled his hand out. On his open palm lay a broken arm, black and white and red, with paint applied unevenly in splotches, light wood showing underneath it. Tyki stopped and stared into his hand, people brushing past him. Finally, he clenched his fist and slid it back into his pocket, feeling a crooked smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He raised his eyes, piercing through the crowd in search for that twice damned confection store--

\-- and he saw.

White hair. Black coat. Standing out against the stir of colours, carried along the incessant river of people in the company of two other exorcists, clutching an armful of packets and not watching his step, his laughter drowning in the noise of the street. He was bound to notice Tyki at _some_ point, _he was walking straight at him_ …

They stopped in their tracks right in front of him. Tyki noted the quick uneasy glances, the clenching of fists, the slight shift of balance – not quite the fighting stance just yet, but ready to slip into one at any moment if need be. They stood like this for a moment, all four of them, glaring in silence among the buzz, motionless against the rush, four black shadows cut clean out of a piece of colourful cloth. Finally, Tyki touched the rim of his hat in a half-mocking greeting.

Whatever was to happen between them, now was not the time. Not here. Not today.

“Merry Christmas, boy,” he said with a smile and slid past them, vanishing in the crowd and the blizzard, relishing the look of utter outraged confusion on the exorcists’ faces.

It wasn’t too surprising that eventually the candy canes completely slipped his mind.


End file.
